Brain-Body DNA or How Meditation Supports the Foundation of Health
What is the first thing that comes to your mind about achieving optimal health?
There are really many factors we can consider, but most people don't put meditation at the top of their list physical health and long-term excellent physical and mental health. However, this opinion may be changing as we keep coming across fascinating research results that keep on enlightening us regarding the immense health benefits of this time-honored practice.
The most well-known benefit of meditation is its ability to break down stress.
We know that chronic stress can have severe health consequences by suppressing immunity, fueling inflammation, damaging cellular health and DNA, and promoting the development of multiple disease-causing processes. Today, research shows that continuous stress can have a profound effect on DNA by shortening telomeres and thus putting us at a higher risk of developing chronic diseases. But research shows that meditation successfully heals this DNA damage, restores mental peace, while offering serious health benefits. Meditation really helps heal a person from the inside out. Special treatment practice
Here's how: STRENGTHENS TELOMERES
Our genes are located in twisted, double-stranded DNA molecules called chromosomes, and at the ends of chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres. Telomeres are basically the tips that protect chromosomes from damage caused by
aging, ill health, environmental assaults and other influences. (Think of them like the ends of shoelaces.) Researchers already knew that telomeres shorten as a person ages, but new research finds that chronic stress—and other factors—can speed up the process.
Telomere wear can be slowed by activating an enzyme called telomerase, which repairs the ends of telomeres and protects them from fraying. Research shows that regular meditation can increase telomerase activity by more than 30 percent: This means enhanced protection for DNA and healthy cellular longevity.
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REDUCES INFLAMMATION
A number of other studies show that regular meditation can reduce chronic inflammation. This makes sense because stress releases cortisol and other pro-inflammatory signals in the body. Researchers found that regular meditation reduced inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein in saliva samples. Other research shows that regular meditation suppresses the expression of genes associated with inflammatory processes.
BOOSTS IMMUNITY
Studies of cancer patients and other immunocompromised people show that meditation helps restore healthy immune function—including natural killer cell and cytokine action—as well as antioxidant function. See also: The boiled frog syndrome: what you're wasting your energy on?
SUPPORTS HEART HEALTH
A number of studies show that meditation lowers blood pressure and slows resting heart rate. Other research shows that regular meditation can reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke by up to 48 percent. Apparently, the stress relievers anti-inflammatory benefits from meditation help strengthen heart health, but things may run deeper. Meditation helps increase feelings such as love and compassion, strengthens areas of the brain associated with empathy, and the emotions and enhances our natural state of cordiality. This can have a profound effect on the physical health of the heart as well as our overall ability to heal.
REDUCES PAIN, IMPROVES OUTLOOK AND QUALITY OF LIFE
Magnetic resonance imaging shows that meditation can reduce activity in some parts of the brain involved in pain processing. Other studies of chronic pain patients show that regular meditation helps reduce pain intensity and improves quality of life. Discover the special healing meditation with the unique participation of Theodosii Spasov
In the field of neuroscience, researchers are learning how meditation boosts brain power, strengthens connections between neurons, relieves depression, regulates emotional reactivity, builds compassion and empathy, and improves concentration and focus, among other benefits. This may just be the tip of the iceberg!
PREPARATION
(View the collection of guided meditations by Milena Goleva here: https://milenagoleva.com)
Practicing meditation begins with quieting the mind's incessant chatter. A wise metaphor describes the daily state of our hyperactive brains: "The brain is like a blind man riding a wild horse." We have no control and we don't know where our thoughts will take us. We are captives of mental processes that express the incessant dialogue between desires and antipathies. Quite literally, the brain is wired for the constant alternation of love and hate: what we want to happen to us versus what we fear will happen to us.
Society, media and marketing groups understand and use these mental circuits. In other words, we continue to enforce this expression of our ego instead of working to free ourselves from the emotional battle that dictates our feelings, thoughts, habits, actions, relationships, and life experiences.
By simply taking a step back and making an effort to notice
these mental and emotional patterns, we stop this neurotic ubiquitous circuit. Practicing meditation helps us notice, release, and gradually reduce these frenetic thought patterns so that we can truly relax and recharge our nervous system. Gradually, meditation provides us with the opportunity for the distance between thoughts to become greater and clearer. Attachments and insights begin to wane and we relax into this vast space and become far more aware. We begin to feel more peace, clarity and stronger love and compassion.
This process is not about running away or breaking away
—and how to train our minds to be more calm, focused and aware. Feelings invariably arise during meditation: pain, sadness, fear, hope, and hatred. But just like the clouds they pass away. The true nature of the mind is like the sky that lies behind the clouds—clear open and spacious. The purpose of meditation is not to suppress thoughts or feelings, but simply to watch them come and go like clouds. Read more: ❤️ 5 techniques to eliminate negative thoughts
First, find a quiet place. Sit or lie comfortably with your back straight.
Place a small object on the ground in front of you, such as a pebble, and focus on that object and on your breathing. It won't be easy at first. Your hard-working brain is likely to be distracted by to-do lists for the day and other intrusive thoughts. This is a natural part of the process, so just gently bring the emphasis back to your breath and the object in front of you. As you continue to nurture this inner peace with regular practice, it will become more accessible; on the other hand, it will offer you more than just peace of mind. It opens the door to an incredible arsenal of health benefits.
No matter what your age, health or religion,
regular meditation can be beneficial on all levels. With more and more doctors recommending this ancient practice, meditation is gaining a well-deserved reputation as a powerful modality for promoting health and warding off disease. Simply put: Practicing meditation—even just 15 minutes a day—allows our ability to heal to take a giant leap forward.
Isaac Elias, MD
Source:
Learn more about Milena Goleva's collection of meditations here: https://milenagoleva.com
